The Daily Observer London Desk: Reporter- Sarah Marshal
I spend a week on the biggest cruise ship in the world, Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas – and this is what it’s like.
As I board, I set myself a challenge: to try to experience everything Icon of the Seas has to offer. I have a week – is it even possible?
If so, I plan to capture POV footage of it all: seven swimming pools, six record-breaking slides and new thrill ‘Crown’s Edge’ – a high-altitude ropes course where you dangle off the ship’s side, 154 feet above the waves. Sound scary? Trust me, it is!
What grabs the attention first isn’t any of these things.
Instead, it’s the eye-popping décor. Technicolor is an understatement. Seats, swings, drinks, slides and the carousel – yes, the ship has a full-size merry-go-round – pop every shade of the rainbow, as does the ship’s giant pink flamingo mascot!
Jo Kessel (above) spends a week on the biggest cruise ship in the world, Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas
Icon of the Seas is 66m (215ft) wide and 365m (1,198ft) long – and weighs 250,800 gross tonnes
And it doesn’t stop there. I get a sneak peek at its new £116k-a-week cabin ($147k) dubbed the ‘Ultimate Family Townhouse’, which is off the charts colour-wise. It’s a three-floor suite that sleeps six, has a staircase that plays like a piano, and an indoor slide and trampoline.
It’s quite possibly the brightest accommodation on the planet, and unbelievably (considering its price tag), it’s sold out for the next year.
The scale of this behemoth has been a talking point across the globe and it’s clear from my high step count – I clock on average 10,000 steps a day just walking around – that Icon is massive.
Jo gets a sneak peek inside Icon’s £116k-a-week cabin ($147k) dubbed the ‘Ultimate Family Townhouse’, which has its own slide (above)
Jumping for joy: Jo gives the Ultimate Family Townhouse’s trampoline a try
The ‘Ultimate Family Townhouse’ (above) is off the charts colour-wise, says Jo
But it’s not until we dock in Royal Caribbean’s private Bahamian island, Coco Cay, that it really hits home. Already there when we arrive is one of Royal Caribbean’s smaller ships, Vision of the Seas. When we park up next to it, the sight is almost comical – like Little and Large!
Flashing like a beacon at the top of Icon’s stern is the ship’s Category 6 record-breaking aqua park, the biggest ever built on a cruise ship.
Its six slides have storm-related names, but for me, the Frightening Bolt drop slide is too scary, sorry.
Buoy oh buoy: Jo signs up for Crown’s Edge, a brand-new Royal Caribbean attraction
Towering over the top deck, Crown’s Edge ‘is a hybrid obstacle and zip-line course that takes you whizzing and dangling 154 feet off the side of the ship above the waves’, explains Jo, who adds: ‘Sound scary? Trust me, it is!’
Instead, I make a beeline for the pink Hurricane Hunter raft slide, which turns out to be twisty, turning psychedelic fun.
Then it’s time for the green Storm Surge slide, which whooshes riders up, down, round and spins them unnervingly backwards – cue over-excited squealing and blue language.
Finally, I inch towards Pressure Drop, the first open free-fall slide at sea with a petrifyingly sheer 66-degree gradient.
When Icon docks in Bahamian island Coco Cay, it ‘comically’ dwarfs one of Royal Caribbean’s smaller ships, Vision of the Seas
At the top of Icon’s stern is Category 6 – a record-breaking aqua park. It’s the biggest ever built on a cruise ship
Jo braves Pressure Drop, the first open free-fall slide at sea, with a ‘petrifyingly sheer’ 66-degree gradient
Jo reveals that ‘it takes an age’ for her to pluck up courage to go down Pressure Drop. Her top tip? ‘Don’t procrastinate – just go’
Jo rides the pink Hurricane Hunter raft slide, which she says is ‘twisty, turning psychedelic fun’
It takes an age to pluck up the courage to do it and, for several minutes after I’ve crash-splashed at the bottom, I’m in shock! Top Tip: don’t procrastinate – just go.
Hour by hour, sections of Icon are ticked off the list.
I experience The Pearl – a giant pink art installation at the heart of the ship. I locate the wraparound Promenade Deck.
And I spend time at each of Icon’s seven pools – one for each day of the week. I enjoy a G&T at Royal Caribbean’s first-ever swim-up bar, Swim & Tonic.
And I take in a comedy show as well as all the ship’s main theatrical productions: the acrobatic water show in the AquaDome, the ice-skating show in the rink and a full-length Wizard of Oz musical where Dorothy flies over the audience on her four-poster bed. You’ve got to see it to believe it.
Pictured: One of the seven swimming pools onboard Icon of the Seas
Jo says that one of the most striking aspects of Icon is ‘the eye-popping décor’, adding: ‘Technicolor is an understatement’
LEFT: Jo tries out the swinging hammock onboard the ship. RIGHT: Jo visits the kids’ neighbourhood, which features a merry-go-round
Ploughing through all 40 of Icon’s restaurants and bars proves trickier and I give up, but I do find good food. The buffet and main dining room are of a high standard, but my favourites are the AquaDome’s Asian food stall GNGR and Park Café in Central Park. Icon is divided into eight distinct ‘neighbourhoods’ and Central Park is one of them. Another is The Grove. This comes with its own sun terrace, pool and restaurants and is reserved exclusively for guests staying in suites.
Unbelievably, I’m offered an upgrade here and my cabin and its panoramic window are standout.
After four days I still haven’t tried Icon’s surf simulator or climbing wall or visited a single shop, but I do sign up for Crown’s Edge, a brand-new Royal Caribbean attraction.
Jo says that the ship’s Wizard of Oz musical (above) ‘has to be seen to be believed’
Jo is offered an upgrade to a panoramic suite (above)
Icon of the Seas sails roundtrip Miami seven-night cruises to the Caribbean from £1,600pp
Footballer Lionel Messi boards the ship for a special naming ceremony and Jo happens to be standing within touching distance of him (left). Jo writes: ‘I freeze, incredulous, up close to one of the world’s biggest icons, on Icon. Who’d have thought?’
Towering over the top deck, it’s a hybrid obstacle and zip-line course that takes you whizzing and dangling 154 feet off the side of the ship above the waves. There is a gale blowing the day I do it and while the weather does calm down, strong gusts of wind (audible on the video) add a real sense of danger to the experience.
Icon of the Seas is a great name for a vessel packed with iconic experiences. As godfather to the ship, the legendary Argentinian footballer Lionel Messi hops on board for a special naming ceremony and as he prepares to launch the bottle of champers to smash on Icon’s hull – an ancient tradition thought to bring good luck – he comes to stand within touching distance of me. I freeze, incredulous, up close to one of the world’s biggest icons, on Icon. Who’d have thought?
Icon is a ship full of so many surprises that it’s impossible to do everything in a week without exhausting yourself. Do I manage it? No. Am I upset? Absolutely not! I’ll just have to come back to finish the challenge off.
For more from Jo, visit Go with Jo.
ICON OF THE SEAS BY THE NUMBERS
• Icon of the Seas is 66m (215ft) wide and 365m (1,198ft) long – and weighs 250,800 gross tonnes
• It has 20 decks and can accommodate 7,600 guests (at full capacity) in its 2,805 cabins
• There are 2,350 international crew members on board
• Its AquaDome contains 600 panes of glass
• It has 40 dining venues and bars, 20 of them new
• Icon is Royal Caribbean’s 27th ship
• Royal Caribbean has a new ship, Utopia, planned for summer 2024
